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Friday, December 30, 2011

If you have anything to donate, LBC even here in the US is helping the victims of the typhoon Sendong in the Philippines, you will just need to drop the box, sending is FREE. I went to LBC in Dillingham here in Hawaii. They have branches in Chicago, Florida, California and probably in other parts of the US too. They might even offer a free pick up in some areas. Of course, this donation drive is also ongoing within the Philippines. LBC will accept donations till January 6, 2012 according to their Facebook Wall.

I only sent one box by the way for donation. The other one will be for another "project". For donation, I placed clothes, towels, blankets and sheets that we no longer use. I hope it will help in any way. You probably know already I'm originally from the Philippines and I'm crossing my fingers that I can go "home" next year.

I know I should be delivering good news because it will be New Year but maybe somehow through this we can deliver some hope to the victims . It was a really sad time that this happened before Christmas and the death toll rised to over 1,200. I chose to share this video from YouTube because I think it's clear enough and short. I'm late in posting this.

Just for more information about LBC, here is their main website--LBCExpress.Com

Here are some blog events to join, this will be one of the changes I will be doing for my blog next year year. I think it would be a good exposure and I found these events helpful on those times that I am unable to sit on the computer because I'm busy. Blog giveaways are also a great way to give back to my readers. My blog has given me a lot this year so I think it is time to invest and give back. If you know of more blog events, please let me know. Thanks a lot for all your visits!

Please click the links for more information. I had a hard time posting the HTML so I just placed the link above the button.

Thursday, December 29, 2011

Eyeglasses can be expensive, especially if you buy them from an optometrist. If you’re looking for high-quality, but monetarily cheap eyeglasses, you should try Zenni Optical. It is our new favorite place to shop for glasses now and we recently ordered two pair of reading glasses and are very happy with them. We chose the simple designs but a lot of their eyeglasses at Zenni are very stylish. They fit perfectly, and there is no noticeable difference between them and eyeglasses costing much more.

Here is the picture of what we ordered:

They have a very large variety of frames and lenses to choose from, and even glasses with holiday themes for those of you who want to celebrate in style. You can to check out the great deals and frame styles. They also launched holiday themed eyeglasses. You'll find the perfect eyeglasses for Valentine's, Christmas, Thanksgiving and other holidays . At this time, they are offering free shipping for orders $50 or more so you can get an even better deal. You’ll be very happy with the cost, must lower than you would expect for quality glasses. I know we’re very happy with the quality of glasses and great service we received from them and you will be too.

I hope all of you had great Christmas. We just had more food than usual during Christmas Eve and we extended our Christmas the day after by going to the Honolulu City Lights. Every year since I had RC, we go here, it's like a family tradition. The decorations are mostly the same but I enjoy coming here because it makes me feel like we celebrate Christmas even more.

This year, RC was big enough to ride the train and the carousel so that's something that we did experience this year that's different from the past.

Mele Kalikimaka means Merry Christmas in Hawaiian. The print at the back of these blocks shows Hau’oli Makahiki Hou (Happy New Year). I can remember Mele Kalikimaka but not the greetings for New Year.

I like this mini carousel for kids. I saw it and I was excited to take RC so she can ride it because the horses are just the right size for her.

The Shaka Santa. Should I say that's the Hawaiian Mrs Claus or maybe Mrs Shaka Santa.

Another year before we head back to this place to see these giant Christmas figures and ornaments.

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

If you have young children like I do I know that you are probably worried
about them getting on the internet. You will probably want to stand over their
shoulder or even hold the mouse while they direct you where to click, constantly
on guard for an offensive pop up. If you don’t have an internet connection you
should get Wild Blue. Even if you are
afraid of what your kids may be looking at online you can still benefit from all
the great things the internet has to offer. One of my kid’s favorite web sites
is www.nick.com. It is a site for everything Nickelodeon. My kids love the interactive
games and the page with the information about each show. They like to go in
and click on each and every show information page to see what new pictures they
have posted of their favorite characters and read and then reread all about the
character’s life in TV land. One of the best things about this site is that I
know when my kids are on there I don’t have to worry about a popup coming up
that they don’t need to see or any other inappropriate content.

The phrase term curb appeal is concerned with making a good first impression when people pass by your home, but what are some things that can give your home more curb appeal? There are lots of things, but a nice lawn and foliage certainly help, along with entrance light fixtures, welcome mats and personalized mailboxes. As you drive around, you will notice that most people have the normal drab mailbox, but the ones you remember are the custom mailboxes because they are different and add character to a home.

There are numerous brands for custom mailboxes, but some of the most popular are Bacova mailboxes. Bluegrass Woods Mailboxes are the manufacturers of a complete line of mailboxes, along with other items like ice buckets, card tables, serving trays, etc. They also offer Bacova Guild mailboxes , which are the work of professional artists and are hand laminated with a fiberglass wrap to ensure they last for many years. They are sturdier than the standard mailbox and much more appealing. I especially like the handpainted mailboxes.

Sunday, December 25, 2011

If The Shoe Doesn't Fit is an auction site for shoe lovers.
There are high end shoes but there are also bargains for moms like me who loves
to get items for cheap.
There are shoes for all ages! You can shop not just for yourself but for the
entire family. I notice most of the shoes are for women though.

If you would like to sell shoes or swap shoes, you can also
utilize their site. Here are some helpful information:

Swapping- List for free

2 Free Listings to Sell- Promo code SOLES

5 Free Listings to
Sell- Promo code B2B, you can use this with the other promo code SOLES to get 7
free listings!

You can get up to 8 free pictures per listing so it's affordable. Auto relisting up to 9 times for free is also allowed if you don't sell your shoes immediately.

For updates about their current and past promotions, you can
follow them in http://twitter.com/ITSDF
or Like their fan page at Facebook.

For the giveaway, Ellen of If The Shoe Doesn't Fit gave me a beautiful bracelet that
have purse and shoe charms, too cute!

Disclosure: I received the bracelet in exchange of a review for the site If The Shoe Doesn't Fit. No other compensation was received.

I joined the Christmas Letdown giveaway hop so please check out the other blogs who are hosting giveaways.

The day after Christmas sometimes feels like a letdown.

All that preparation, then BAM it's over.

You're left with a hundred boxes and three garbage bags of torn paper.

With the bad financial collapse experienced by the American economy starting in late 2008, many of us are left with credit histories that have unfavorable information in them due to late payments, non-payments, and perhaps foreclosures and bankruptcies. But you may ask how to fix credit reports after going through a tough financial crisis? Here are information that I have learned based on research and personal experience. I still need to learn more though and try to apply what I learned.

There are a few options, but all will take dedication and a willingness to pay down your debt along with living a more frugal lifestyle. If you want to know how to rebuild credit fast, the first step will be to gather all your bills and make a record of each one, with the remaining balance and the minimum payment each month. After that you should list them from smallest to largest and pay off the smallest one first, no matter what the interest rates are on each debt. Once you pay off a debt, then use the extra money you were paying on that debt and combine it to start paying off the next smallest debt. Keep continuing this until your debts are gone. But if you’re wondering how to find the best credit repair service after getting your financial house in order, you need to get a copy of your credit report and scan it thoroughly, looking for any discrepancies that you can request to have removed. By watching your credit report closely, you will be amazed at how quickly your credit history can be repaired with paying your bills on time and sending extra each month. So, start getting your credit repaired and fix your financial health, it will not only result in a higher credit score, but you’ll probably sleep better at night too.

Saturday, December 24, 2011

Here are more Christmas decorations, this time from the mall, so lavish and festive. I don't really have much pictures of myself lately. These pictures were taken by me last week. RC was wearing a regular scarf that I turned into an infinity scarf. It was raining so I made her wore her rain boots for the first time outside before they're too small for her feet.

Just a quick story, I only had $2 and I needed $3 cash so RC can ride this train. So I went around asking stores if they can give a cash back if I buy something but all of them said no. Some are not even aware what it is. RC kept crying. I remembered I had some candy bars and maybe the train cashiers will take them because they are worth more than a dollar. So I went and asked and the person infront of me also buying a ticket heard me and offered to give a dollar, how nice! So we got lucky. Then, not looking at the time that was posted at the ticket, I took RC to the train where parents are already loading the kids. I thought it was great that we did not have to be in line for long. It turned out we had to wait for another hour before she can ride as her train ticket says. So then RC was upset and crying (loudly) again. There was one spot the very front and I saw that there was no kid sitting. I asked if she can get that spot, first they said no but after they made final calls and paged no more kid showed up and RC got the spot. So there, free dollar and not needing to wait! I know that wasn't such a quick story. Not much but it's probably one of the things that I would always remember even when RC is much older.

The year is almost over. I hope all of you had a great year this year and more blessings to come in the year ahead! Merry Christmas!

Friday, December 23, 2011

Wouldn’t it be cool to have a tiki bar at your outdoor area?
Bamboo fencing is an environmentally friendly idea to build a tiki bar and it’s
durable too. Bamboo grows rapidly and is easily replaced in
the tropics, unlike hard woods which can take decades to grow. Using bamboo can also save some money because it is low maintenance. If we have one, I think it would be nice to decorate it
depending on the season.

Most of the popular home improvement programs on
television focus on kitchens and but some are geared toward the outside of the
home.Many homes have
decks these days where families can relax outdoors and grill some burgers and
hotdogs.Decks can be made of a variety
of products, but there are also accessories to consider, like panels to provide
extra shade or as accent pieces.One of
the best choices is bamboo paneling.It’s a versatile material that you can use to cover areas of your deck
or pavilion to give it a more tropical look.

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

This is how our living room looks like after I picked up the toys. I changed the furniture arrangement about two months ago so all the toys will be concentrated in this area instead of everywhere in our apartment. What type of flooring do you have? We have mostly carpet and
some linoleum at the kitchen and the bathroom. The carpet
has been nice especially when RC was still a baby, she can crawl and not get
hurt by a flat hard surface when she was learning how to walk. Having a quality vacuum is so important for floor care. (There are Sears coupons available for vacuums.)However, I wish
we have wood floors because I like the look of it and I think it is easier to
clean with cleaning materials available at the market.

With the
rising cost of flooring materials and the labor required to install them, many
times it makes more sense to restore floors instead of replacing them.One of the latest trends for sidewalks and
patios is colored concrete made to look like tile or marble.There are floor care machines available that
do concrete polishing to make that concrete work much easier.Concrete lasts forever if given the proper
care and maintenance over the years.So
if you’re looking for information about wood restoration, or just wanting to
maintain the beautiful floors you have, you can check out floorcare.com.They have some great equipment and supplies
to make your repairs and maintenance much easier and cheaper.

I participated in a campaign about wood restoration. This post is brought to you by http://www.floorcare.com/. All opinions are mine.

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

These pictures were taken last week at the library. Somebody (RC) was a little too noisy, we had to get out. We received the final warning from the lady guard so when she made more noise, I just decided it was time to go.

She had a good choice of book, she loved this Nihao Kailan book. very colorful.

We went to McDonald's after and had ice cream, sooo good. First I thought of going to Cold Stone but I can only get one of this size for the price of two at McDonalds.

I’ve always wondered how the extreme couponers can save so much
when it says on the coupons that you can only use one coupon per item. I
remember one time, I was trying to “copy” the items that other coupon bloggers
got but I am not even close to the savings they got from the same items. After
taking the Couponing: The Extreme Video Course, I learned tips and tricks on how to use coupons
and get free items.Just think about savings that
you can get if most of your toiletries are free or almost free.

What I think about the videos:

1. It's easy to understand. You can hear the speaker
Rayven Perkins well with examples (including computations and sample products).

2.
It's organized, it starts with videos about
organizing coupons, learning the basics to applying the coupons to specific stores.

3.I can tell that the speaker wanted to share what
she knows and she shares her knowledge completely with these videos.

4.I can relate to the speaker. I see myself doing
this because I am frugal. I like to save, I like to take advantage of trial items or get things for free at stores.

I am on my way to subscribing to our local
paper, search for online coupons and apply what I have learned. I believe even
if I do not take it to the extreme, these videos will still help me a lot when
it comes to saving when we go to our favorite grocery or drug store. I am
already using coupons, it is something that I was encouraged to do because of
other bloggers like me who are looking for ways to save some bucks.

If you are interested in couponing, please
visit this website. I’ll probably share more about it later once I get to have
some freebies or have great savings because of what I learned in this course. I’m
confident that I can do this and stay a stay at home mom.

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Last month, we went shopping for Christmas trees and the prices for the trees that we liked are about $100. I decided not to have a Christmas tree. I could use that money to buy something else that we need especially this time that bills and expenses are piling up. Recently, I notice RC is very fond of Christmas trees, she always try to pull the ornaments when we’re at the lobby of our building. We went to the library the other day and she wanted to play with the tree.

Today, I went to the mall to take RC to ride the
Christmas train and maybe do a little window shopping. I saw this 4 feet tree
priced at $14.99, additional 25% off because the store is closing. I knew I had to get
it. We set it up and RC was jumping for joy. I thought I could use the flower
pins to decorate it because I did not buy ornaments. She helped me decorate it with her toys too. I have a
feeling the toy ornaments will change everyday, maybe a few times per day. I would
not have to worry if this will fall on her because it’s short, light and no lights attached. She now has her very own Christmas tree.

Preparing your home and mind for the holidays is never easy and manytasks often get left till the last minute.
Part of the problem is we sometimes feel the process has to be kind oflike spring cleaning but in truth, there’s a lot less to worry about.
Unless you truly have time and energy for going through closets andstorage or boxes in the attic the focus should be on things that will enhancethe experience of being with friends and family.

That said, here are a few ideas to give you ahead start and take off some of the pressure when it’s crunch time:

1. Organize the kitchen: Chances are you’re going to be doing a lot of cooking for your loved ones and other guests. That’s why one of your top priorities should be to organize the kitchen so you can find what you need when you need it. Also, if you’re really going to have a full house you may want to label some of those custom kitchen cabinets so friends and family can help themselves to things like coffee, tea, and sugar.

2. Holiday cards: Purchase or make your own but start filling them out now because the longer you wait the shorter some of those personal messages may get.

3. Clean house crud: Take a look around the house and see if there’s any noticeable crud needing to be removed. Sometimes it’s on or around door knobs and cabinet doors or about waist level on the walls when passing between rooms.

4. Prep the guest room: Some guests arrive on time and others who may be flying in from out of town could show up earlier than you expected. To avert awkward moments prep the guest room early by clearing out clutter, setting aside linens, vacuuming, and adding some chocolates and other welcoming pieces around the room. That way you’ll just have to do some minor dusting shortly before they arrive.

5. Gifts: Start making the gift list now so you know exactly what you want to get.

6. Dusting the decorations: Sometimes holiday decorations that weren’t put away properly the previous year end up collecting a lost of dust. This is especially true of artificial trees that aren’t easy to wrap up and store. If some of your family members have sensitivities to dust or mold do the following before bringing these items into the main living space: Wipe off decorations and ornaments as best as possible and wash the tree down outside letting it dry completely in the sun prior to bringing it back inside.

7. New Years plans: Don’t wait for last minute deals. If you’re planning on traveling make reservations now, as flights and rooms will fill up quickly.

8. New Years resolutions: Think now about how you want next year to begin so when the clock strikes twelve you’re ready for change!

Saturday, December 17, 2011

It is a perfect time to find what gifts you would like to give to your mother. Makobi Scribe is proud to present Mother’s Day Gift Ideas Carnival Event from May 10 12:01 PM EST to May 18 at 12:01 PM EST and is accepting signups now.

I have always seen blog events on blogs but I haven't really tried them yet I'll try to sign up and hopefully I'll do it right on those dates. If you want to sign up, I understand that you will need to host a giveaway for at least $25 value on those dates. Wish me luck.

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About this blog

This is my style of raising my child while she shows her own style as she grows (so fast). This blog is mostly about our moments together and the places we have been. This blog will constantly change depending on the type of activities we do. My daughter is now 3 years old and I plan to make her preschool years fun and educational. I learn a lot of things from the experiences I am having as a mother.